Czechia

Arriving to Prague was such a whiplash. The immigration went pretty smoothly and the lady manning the information booth was very kind and helpful. Not soon after, I lost my Revolut card into one of the ATMs. I wasn't about to wait the whole day for some staff to get it out so I gave up and froze the card and went onwards. I was going to have to survive on just my credit card and perhaps some dollars if need be.

Considering just how all the anxiety and stress of the morning had been transmuted to feelings of lightness and dare I say, even joy. It was quite strange despite everything and for the first time in a long time, I was happy. Even more so than any day in Turkey, I was elated and truly felt again, the spirit of travel.

Exploring Prague was pretty straight forward. After booking in Luma Terra, which I would say is actually not only one of the best but THE best hostel I have ever stayed in, in my life when it comes to comfort, ergonomics, and modernity, but more on that later.

I walked right on to the Old Town and saw all the various churches, towers, and more churches. Some of the main highlights were of course the Astronomical Clock in the main square and some of the other Gothic architecture. Speaking of which, Avery was right on just how beautiful Prague truly is. I have been to several European cities and even Paris couldn't compare to Prague. Everything was just so culturally preserved and designed to aesthetic perfection. Every street, every corner, every building blended perfectly despite being from different time periods. The reason I read was that because Prague, unlike other European cities, was never bombed during the wars so a lot of its original layout has been untouched for centuries.

Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a familiar symbol. The great Ganja, here in Prague? No, it couldn't be. This wasn't Amsterdam, yet I no sooner found myself inside one of the shops, perusing their green goods. Most interesting but I mustn't get carried away. As soon as I left the shop, I found myself in smart shop and couldn't help but nab myself a bag of gummies. Perhaps not the best idea, or was it a good idea? I popped a gummy in as I readied for a doozy of a day, the best was yet to come.

As I headed to Prague Castle to see the famous Vilnius Cathedral, the gummies started to hit and they hit hard. I put on some tunes and took my time to explore all the way to the top where luckily most of the tourists have already left as the sun started to set. I sat on a bench infront of the towering black cathedral as I let it sink in that I'm flying high in Prague. The hot weather of the day was slowly getting cooler as well. I decided to pop in one of the restaurants to get an early dinner as the munchies were getting to me. I ate some pasta and had a bit of a drink before continuing on downwards the other side only to be stopped dead in track as the sprawling views of Prague spread out before my eyes.

I simply had to sit down and take it all in as the city gets painted in twilight. After a long time reflecting, I realized that it was indeed getting dark and cold. The path down was a winding one with twists and turns through a hilly park which was kind of creepy at night but as I reached one of the bridges, the energy and atmosphere changed again with all the people enjoying Prague under Night. Somehow, I was able to get to my hostel just fine, I hurriedly took a shower and got on one of the most comfortable beds I have ever had the pleasure of laying down on. The pillows were amazing and the privacy curtains another plus. It was designed so well that the exact length of the charger cable for my phone was the distance from the outlet to my hand. It had a private mini-fan inside for ventilation and everything was swell...until around midnight. A Chinese tourist suddenly started blaring loud music and videos much to everyone's annoyance until a lady from another bunk went down to bang on his bed side to tell him to shut up. It was incredible how ill-mannered some people could be. I gave him a mind of my own in the morning the next day just for him to apologize again sheepishly.Read more